Buzzing your own hair??

[bairdt]

Hi, I just joined up today. I just started buzzing my hair. Using clippers with  guard one on top, 2 on the sides. I am almost completely thinned out on top and was wondering what most guys do when they get in this shape? I am 47 years old and seeing my what was once super mullet hairdo go to nothing is tough...ha ha! Seems bald is in now days, but making that first shave is gonna be rough. Drop down to a 1/2 maybe all over? I am tall and thin. Not sure what I would look like totally bald...but nature looks like I will be there soon!

[The Noggin]

Hi there bairdt.
It's hard to imagine yourself bald, so you should try a no guard buzz. That way you still have hair, but you come very close to look bald. For many (including me) that has been the road to become sly. 

[clipped]

My hair sounds similar to yours: real thin on top. I am in my 50s.  I gradually worked down from a #2 buzz to #1.5T/#2S&B; then #1.5 overall; then #1T/#1.5 S&B; then #0T/#OAS&B; now vary between #OA or #0 all around.  Since you're already thin on top, if you're going to buzz, it makes sense for the top to be shorter than the sides & back, unless you just go the same all over. The zero all over will give a good look at what you'll look like shaved. 

[D.A.L.U.I.]

Bairdt & Clipped, consider this, shave it then after 30 days, let it grow out to a length you're comfortable w/.  If you decide to stay totally sly, all the better, but you can more easily control the buzz you want if you start at wood, then find the guard that just keeps it at the chosen length. 

[chaucer]

I've been getting my hair buzzed to a #2.  I cut other men's hair all the time but not my own.  I'm hoping to get the nerve to go even shorter and then 'sly.'  I appreciate all the encouragement I've received here but I'm not there yet.

[CraftyGuy]

I've been getting my hair buzzed to a #2.  I cut other men's hair all the time but not my own.  I'm hoping to get the nerve to go even shorter and then 'sly.'  I appreciate all the encouragement I've received here but I'm not there yet.

Buzzing tends to draw you in further.  I had done a #2 for a while and then found myself down to a #1.   Then a #1/2 for a (pardon the pun) very short time, and then SLY!

[chaucer]

lol...thanks.  Yesterday I went to a # 1.5...........................

[Rob]

That's how I did it too: number 2, number 1, zero, then I shaved.  All along I was wanting to shave it, but then I decided to just go for it ( I was thinking about doing it way too much! ) so I did it, and four years later I still love it.

[stemikger]

Posted by Cementpizza
Hey all! I am a new member here, but have been a lurker for some time now. Anyways, I am 20 years old and my hair is noticeably starting to thin at the temples and at the vertex. About 6 months ago(when I first noticed thinning) I went to the hair cuttery and had them buzz it with no clipper guard. It looked good and I want to do it again, not only because my hair is thinning, but because my hair is nasty in general (really thick/coarse Italian hair)! Any ways I have a good pair of clippers, can I do this little procedure on my own or with the help of my girlfriend? I figured it would be pretty much impossible to mess up . Last time all I had left was a shadow!

Hey,

This is my Sunday night ritual.  I am not doing the complete sly look yet becuase my main priority is to simplify my life and here is what works for me.  I work midnights and take a 2 hour nap before I go to work, so the last thing I want to do is mess with my hair when I wake up to go to work.  So every Sunday night I take my clipper without the guard and just shave it off.  It's virtually impossible to mess up.  Just hold the blade flat to you head and keep going over it.  I usually go over my head several times so I don't miss any spots.  I do it by feel.  It is very similiar as if you are shaving your head.  The only thing I'm left with is a shadow.  It looks almost like it would look about a day and a half after shaving completely.  I jump in the shower after and take a mirror to look at the back and if there are any small spots, I just go over them again.  And then I take aftershave and pat down my head.  It feels great.  I now look foward to Sunday nights.

By the end of the week, I have a crew cut, but still have a totally care free style.  I have a full head of hair, but am receding in the front.  If I had MPB, I would completely shave, but until then, this works fine for me.

I'm Italian also, and my hair sounds very similiar to yours, so it is a pleasure not to deal with blowdryers, gels, hairspray, etc.

P.S.  You don't have to spend a lot on a clipper.  I have a few, I like the Remington Precesion because you don't need to lube the blades.  I also have the Remington Shortcut that is shaped like a brush and it is as simple as brushing your hair.  When you intend to use the clippers without any guard, most clippers will do the job with ease.

Good Luck, hope this helped.

[chaucer]

I've seen that Shortcut but have not bought it.  I assume it works well?

[thebbqguy]

I just did mine for the first time. My wife had to go over the top again to even it up just right.

Some mentioned the Conair clippers above. Walgreens has the Conair Chopper for $29. I haven't used it, but it looks like it will do the job.  I purchased the Wahl Balding Clippers, which worked well. They produced a nice, fine, even, clear cut.

[Sgt. Pate]

Go all the way... it'll grow back quickly to a 1.5 buzz if you don't like it but... you WILL like it! 

[Sykes]

Don't wait around, it's your head, either buzz it or shave it. I buzzed for several months, then one hot day I shaved...liked it and it's been shaved ever since. Just make up your mind and do it.

[Rob-Raz]

Grab a cheap small handheld mirror.......shave in front of the sink/mirror and use the small mirror to even up the back.  piece of cake.....but using a razor or headblade wirh no mirror at all....even easier! 

[Nonick]

Chaucer, where are you in your journey to sly-dom?  Once you get down below a #1, you are almost there!  It's just a few millimeters more, man!   
Let's see, July 4th...Independence day...freedom from hair and the mental bondage that goes with it... Hmmm